STREET VACATION PETITION INSTRUCTIONS VACATION OF STREET OR PORTION THEREOF SARASOTA COUNTY ORDINANCE 88-130 SECTION 336.09 AND 336.10 FLORIDA STATUTES 1. COMPLETE PETITION The Petition document must be completed in its entirety prior to submission. (Please provide the original signed Petition with an additional copy) If an attorney or other agent has been appointed to represent the property owner, please provide a signed letter of authorization signed by the property owner designating such representative. 2. BOUNDARY SURVEY A boundary survey prepared by a Florida Licensed Professional Land Surveyor, prepared with the benefit of review of a current title report, and certified to SARASOTA COUNTY, A POLITICAL SUBDIVISION OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA. NOTE: Please be certain that all requirements have been met as set forth in Boundary Survey and Sketch Requirements. If these requirements are not met the Petitioner must provide a corrected boundary survey prior to further processing of the Vacation Petition. (Please provide 1 signed and sealed copy of the boundary survey together with an electronic version in PDF format) 3. SKETCH AND LEGAL DESCRIPTION A certified 8 ½ x 11 sketch and Legal Description of the area to be vacated prepared by a Florida Licensed Professional Land Surveyor. NOTE: Please be certain that all requirements have been met as set forth in Boundary Survey and Sketch Requirements. If these requirements are not met the Petitioner must provide a corrected sketch prior to further processing of the Vacation Petition. (Please provide 1 sealed copy of the sketch and legal description together with an electronic version in PDF format. An electronic version of the legal description in WORD format must also be supplied) 4. CERTIFICATE OF APPARENT OWNERSHIP Provided by a Title Company showing name, address, and telephone number (if possible), of all property owners abutting, adjacent or otherwise affected by this vacation. (Please provide original) 5. TITLE REPORT Provide a 20 year Property Information Report enumerating all existing encumbrances (i.e. easements, restrictions, et cetera) which MUST be signed and certified to SARASOTA COUNTY, A POLITICAL SUBDIVISION OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA. NOTE: This report may be provided by a Title Company or law firm. If the report is not signed and certified to Sarasota County, the petitioner must provide a corrected report prior to further processing of the Vacation Petition. (Please provide original) 6. CERTIFICATE OF TAX SEARCH This document is provided by the Tax Collector s Office. The letter must state that all state and county taxes have been paid for the current tax year. Please contact the Tax Collector s Office at info@sarasotataxcollector.com to obtain this document. Subject line should read Certificate of Search. In the body of the email provide your Property Identification No. and your contact information. (Please provide a signed original) Rev. 7/12/18
7. UTILITY COMPANY OBJECTIONS/NO OBJECTIONS Letters of No Objection must be obtained from the utility companies that service the area. For your convenience, contact information is shown below. (Sample Utility No Objection Letter Template available on the county website) Include a sketch and legal description of area to be vacated. The following contact persons are current as of February 1, 2018; however, please be aware these individuals may change at anytime. (No objection letters may be in the form of a letter or email. Frontier Communications, f/k/a Verizon Florida, LLC Stephen Waidley Region Rights-of-Way & Municipal Affairs Manager 3712 W Walnut St Tampa, FL 33607 PH: 727-468-1760 Mobile: 941-266-9218 Fax: 727-562-1175 E-mail: stephen.waidley@ftr.com Comcast Cablevision of West Florida, Inc. Gonzalo Rojas Eng. 1, Planning & Design 3490 Technology Dr Venice, FL 34275 Phone: 941-342-3578 Fax: 941-488-9131 E-mail: gonzalo_rojas@cable.comcast.com *All requests must be submitted via e-mail. Florida Power & Light Company Greg Coker, West Area Relocations Coordinator 1253 12 th Avenue East Bradenton, FL 34221 Phone: 941-723-4430 E-mail: Greg.Coker@fpl.com Teco/Peoples Gas Dan Shanahan, Engineering Rep. 8261 Vico Court Sarasota, FL 34240 Phone: 941-342-4006 Fax: 941-342-4011 E-mail: djshanahan@tecoenergy.com 2
Englewood Water District Keith Ledford, Utility Engineer 201 Selma Avenue Englewood, FL 34223 Phone: 941-474-3217 Fax: 941-460-1025 E-mail: kledford@englewoodwater.com *Requests may be submitted via e-mail. If property is located in Venice: City of Venice Lori Stelzer, MMC, City Clerk 401 W. Venice Avenue 941-882-7390 941-480-3031 lstelzer@venicegov.com 8. ABUTTING PROPERTY OWNER(S) OBJECTIONS/NO OBJECTIONS All abutting property owners must be notified of the petition to vacate a portion of the street. Letters of No Objection must be obtained from all abutting property. They should be notified by certified mail with instructions that they reply by a date certain. (Sample No Objection Letter Template may be found on the county website.) (No Objection may be in the form of a letter or email. 9. HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION OBJECTIONS/NO OBJECTIONS If the property is located within a development that has a Homeowners Association (HOA), a letter of No Objection must be obtained from the HOA. (Sample HOA No Objection Letter Template may be found on the County website.) (May be in the form of a letter or email.) 10. NOTICE TO OTHERS Notice must be provided to property owners who are adjacent to or may be affected by the proposed road vacation. Refer to sample letter for example. Proof of service may be in the form of a signed acknowledgement by the property owner upon whom notice was served or by certified return mail receipt. 11. SUBDIVISION PLAT If the street/road is part of a platted subdivision, please provide a copy of the appropriate plat. (Please provide one copy only) 12. ROAD/STREET HISTORY Any known history of the street/road should be provided. If the road was granted to the County by a recorded public document, please provide a copy of the specific document. Why was the street/road granted to the County? Did the County pay for the street/road, or was it granted without monetary value? (Please provide 1 copy or a copy of conveying instrument if applicable) 3
13. NON-REFUNDABLE FILING FEE Submission of Non-Refundable Filing Fee in the amount of FIVE HUNDRED AND 00/100 DOLLARS ($500.00) to cover administrative costs, in the form of a check made payable to BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS. 14. OTHER MISCELLANEOUS DOCUMENTATION Upon review of petition and submitted documents, Sarasota County may request additional documentation relating to the application. NOTE: Vacation requests will not be finalized and scheduled for Board consideration until such time as all requested easements (if applicable) have been fully executed and submitted to the Real Estate Services Division. Easements will be held in escrow until such time as the Board acts on the vacation petition. If the vacation is approved, then the applicant will be required to submit payment for recording of the easements to Real Estate Services Division, which will handle the recording. If the vacation is denied, then the original easement documents will be returned to the applicant. The time period required for a vacation petition to be processed averages between 90-120 days. In many instances the process takes a longer period of time due to a variety of factors. In the event a petition becomes over 6 months old, the petitioner is required to provided updated documentation. At the time the petition is presented to the Board of County Commissioners ( BCC ) the boundary survey, title report, certificates of apparent ownership and no objection letters from HOA and abutting/adjacent property owners should be no more than 6 months old. Property tax certificates also need to be updated to reflect taxes paid for the current tax year. Should the petitioner be unable or unwilling to provide updated documentation, the Staff memo to the BCC will reflect the fact that documentation is old and the petitioner failed to comply with the request to update. In addition, the County may elect to send notification letters to any party prior to the upcoming presentation to the BCC. The processing of your Petition will commence when the complete and correct Vacation Petition, all supporting documents, and the filing fee are received at the following address: Address: Sarasota County Government Real Estate Services ATTN: Street Vacations 1660 Ringling Boulevard Suite 240 Sarasota, FL 34236 A Public Hearing will be scheduled by Real Estate Services and advertised one time at least two weeks prior to the date stated therein for such hearing as required by Florida Statutes 336.09 and 336.10. If the road is platted, Florida Statute 177.101 requires the notice of the public hearing to be published twice, one time in no less than two weekly issues. Real Estate Services will prepare and submit the required advertisement to the Sarasota Herald Tribune. Real Estate Services will notify the petitioner of the advertising costs. The petitioner shall remit payment for advertising costs directly to the Sarasota Herald Tribune PRIOR to the ad being published. If the advertising costs are not paid promptly, the Public Hearing will be re-scheduled as necessary. 4
All Petitions for Vacation and Abandoning a Plat, Street Vacation, or a portion thereof, and/or Property Exchanges requires a review by County Staff, proper advertisement, and final approval by the Board of County Commissioners. There are ABSOLUTELY NO GUARANTEES of approval for any filed Petition and the filing fee of $500 is non-refundable. 5